Shining Force EXA

Spiffy:

Iffy:

Not the deepest, nor the most original game.

Two of Sega's upcoming games were announced at the Tokyo Game Show this year. The first was Armored Core 4, a godsend for fans of mechs and large-scale robotic destruction. The second is a rarity, a role-playing game from Sega that will actually see a U.S. release. This game is Shining Force EXA, and it was on display at Sega's booth, where you could go hands-on to try the fighting and spell-hurling for yourself.

The game takes place in a world where humans and demons once lived in adjoining territories in relative peace, but warmongering monarchs have led their people to war. The twin main characters in the game are a predictably cute, cel-shaded pair, fitting in well with all the other characters and monsters in the game. The male is named Toma, and he is accompanied on his travels by a loyal dog named Zenas. The female is named Cyril, and on her shoulder lies a cute little pink beast named Zira, reminiscent of a hairless cat with long, bat wing-like ears and a dragon's tail. The game's visual style is much like one of the fantasy-oriented anime that are so popular in Japan, with characters wielding oversized weapons, and lots of flashy magic and special effects.

The basic gameplay and combat system are very intuitive, and even the Japanese-language edition is a cinch to get a hold of, with the onscreen display clueing you in on what buttons are used for attacks, magic and item usage. The fighting and layout of the game reminded me very much of Diablo and console hack-and-slashers like Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance and Champions of Norrath, albeit with a far different graphical style. You essentially run around a map, with a mini-map in the corner guiding you, shooting enemies or hacking them apart to then pick up the loot and gold that they drop. There are scattered chests to pick up, and boss monsters with a larger life bar than your regular baddie. Your positive feedback for attacks are the requisite numbers onscreen, and it's your job to find the most effective attacks you can unleash to see bigger numbers. Some of the attacks are interesting, with one spell, for instance, unleashing a wake of flames behind your running character, allowing you to pin enemies behind a wall of fire. Of course, you'll also have to keep track of your health and mana, and the items that restore these attributes when they dip below safe levels.

The PlayStation 2 still has plenty of life left in it, and Sega's RPG may end up being quite fun, particularly for those who are tired of turn-based combat and random battles. We'll have more on Shining Force EXA in the near future, so stay tuned!